Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a method and apparatus for detecting a bar-type sign in a traffic sign recognition system, and more particularly, to a traffic sign recognition system and method for effectively detecting a bar-type traffic sign, e.g. an end-of-speed-limit sign, using a principal component analysis (PCA).
Description of the Related Art
Recently, for the convenience of a driver, various functions using a front camera of a vehicle have been developed. For example, there are functions for warning lane departure, vehicle collision detection, and the like, and further, a front camera of a vehicle includes a traffic sign recognition algorithm for recognizing a traffic sign built on a road, along which a vehicle is traveling, and notifying the driver of information on the corresponding traffic sign.
In more detail, a traffic sign recognition (TSR) technique for automatically recognizing a front speed sign using a front camera and providing speed limit information to a driver is currently in common use. The conventional speed sign recognition algorithm has a general recognition performance of detecting a region in which a traffic sign exists using a pattern recognition algorithm with respect to a basic image, recognizing contents of the corresponding traffic sign in the detected region, and notifying a driver of the contents expressed on the corresponding traffic sign when a moving vehicle passes through the corresponding traffic sign.
However, errors occur frequently due to inaccurate recognition of contents, i.e. a numeral, a line, or the like, expressed on a traffic sign. Thus, a more accurate traffic sign recognition algorithm has been required.